GoSale.com :: Reviews by AJHDVJ3Q5N779

Reviews Written By: AJHDVJ3Q5N779

provided by Amazon.com


	Sony ICF-M410V Portable FM/AM/TV/Weather Radio with Sleep/Turn-on Timer
	"solid performance for its class"	2004-12-10
I listen to AM for news in the morning and evening, and classical or jazz FM on occasion. I am not a radio expert as some of the previous reviewers, but have a quality stereo for serious music listening. I purchased this radio to replace a similarly priced Radio Shack model which broke after 6 months. I did not want to get another from Radio Shack, nor buy a second Grundig G-2000A (the "Porsche" design -- nice enough, but pricey for the sound quality). As some reviewers have noted, there does not seem to be much selection among portable table radios. I use it in the kitchen in the morning and around dinner, and sometimes move it around if I am working elsewhere in the house (the Grundig sits in the bathroom). This radio has done a fine job for a product of its size and price. The sound is relatively full and rich (it's not a Bose, but then it costs a tenth the price), though a bit on the darker side. I have had no trouble with its reception or frequency drift, but I do live in a city, so rural users may have a different experience. It separates channels well. I get all the TV and several weather channels in my area but don't use these features. It does not equal a desktop stereo, but then, I think that would be an unrealistic expectation for its size and price. The memory presets are convenient, and the radio has both a sleep and an alarm function (you can set it to come on at a certain time, but not make an actual alarm sound). The controls are intuitive. Construction quality seems good but not great; it is mostly plastic. It is a bit too large to be an ideal travel radio/alarm. Some reviewers commented about a few things which are of less importance to me. The picture alone makes it clear this is a mono device; in any event, a radio this small isn't going to have sufficient separation (or power) to give much in the way of stereo. If you want stereo, spend a bit more and get a larger radio, or save the space and get a walkman type device with good headphones. No AC adapter is included, which is admittedly kind of cheap on Sony's part. Still, something this size is primarily meant to be portable; if you aren't going to move it, and sound quality is your main concern, check out higher end radios (e.g. Tivoli, larger Grundigs) or get a nice stereo clock radio in the $50-100 range. Negatives include the styling, which looks like a small purse (as another reviewer said), and the plastic is a flat off white color, not very appealing. It lacks either a sophisticated or a relaxed appearance, in my opinion. It has no night light, further diminishing its use as a travel alarm/radio. It seems picky about battery power, reporting low batteries with batteries that run other radios without difficulty. This radio has served my needs well, but is not outstanding. I am happy with its performance, reception, portability, and ease of use. If your priority is the best sound quality, and you are willing to sacrifice a bit in the other areas, you would be better off with a different choice.
	SEAGATE 200GB External Hard Drive ST3200823AR PC and Macintosh
	"excellent and versatile external hard drive"	2004-08-14
I decided to purchase an external hard drive primarily to serve as backup data storage for both my laptop and desktop computers. I looked in several stores, asked questions, and read a number of reviews (including here on Amazon). The reviews on Amazon were most helpful. Costwise, this version was a better deal than the 160GB model, on a "dollars per GB" basis. Also, 200 GB is quite a bit, and so there is plenty of extra room for files other than backups. If you have USB 2 or firewire capabilities (any computer made in the last few years should have at least USB), set up is essentially plug and play. I have Win XP which simply recognized the drive as another hard drive, gave it a letter, and I was operational in less than a minute. It took me longer to open the box than get the drive working. Transfer rates seem quite fast with USB 2.0; I did not time it, but backing up 12 GB on my laptop took at most 10 minutes, which included the backup program's compression efforts. When moving or accessing regular files, I cannot see any difference between this and my internal hard drives. I suspect that USB 1.1 would be painfully slow; if you don't have USB 2 or firewire, consider getting a PCI card which supports one or both of these connections ($50 at most), for use with whatever external drive you purchase. The drive is very quiet, and has its own on/off switch. I think this feature is mandatory, especially if you are not going to use the drive all the time. Without a separate power switch, the drive will be on and spinning, causing wear and tear, even if you aren't using it (or you will have to unplug it). With a switch, the choice is up to you. Aesthetically, I found the black and silver case subdued and appealing. Two small blue lights are on the front, one for power and one which lights when you are accessing the drive. Apparently, in reviews of other products, some were rather garish (not a problem here). You can stack and daisy chain multiple units via the firewire outlets, and the unit comes with both a USB 2 and firewire cable. I have only had this unit for about a month, but Seagate has a very good reputation for quality. Western Digital and Maxtor have similar drives which cost somewhat less, but after reading others' reviews of them (including different sized drives), I went with this one because of Seagate's reputation, the power switch, ability to use either USB or firewire, and easy expansion/daisy chaining options. We will see how it holds up over time, but for now I am quite happy.
	Brink's 5037 .62' 1/2 Hour UL Listed Waterproof Molded File Safe
	"good for home use"	2004-05-16
I needed a fireproof file case for home use, to protect important documents such as insurance papers, titles, etc. After visits to several local stores and some on-line research, it is clear there is a large gap between professional equipment (two or more hours of protection, $500+ and hundreds of pounds) and home equipment (30 to 60 minutes protection, about $100 and 100 pounds or less). The major competitor to this Brinks is a Sentry product. Both are rated for 1/2 hour fire protection at 1500-1600 degrees, but the Brinks is also waterproof for hours when completely submerged (what is the first thing the fire department is going to do when the arrive at your burning home?) As well, the design of the Sentry products in this price/size/protection range left a substantial gap between the cover and body of the case. Finally, the Brinks came with a removable caster system which makes it easy to move around (it's about 40 pounds). The down side is that it's rated for only 30 minutes. Sentry makes a case rated for one hour, with a larger internal size, but it weighed 100 pounds and had no handles. I could barely move it, but it was waterproof and better constructed than their 30 minute case, so it might fit your needs closer than mine. Both companies make several safes rated for one hour. These are harder still to move, and may be a target for thieves; I did not get one since I was interested in protecting files and not valuables. If you are interested in professional level protection, include the brand "FireKing" in your search. Obviously, I did not actually test the protection level of this case -- hopefully UL did a good job.